Personal Injury Claim advice

Hintza

If you swing on the chair then it could very easily collapse. Can you show you didn't?

If they decide to contest any case you can be sure they will have all the reports that they need to say they are safe if used correctly.

gik

leachi wrote: »

Tomtontom, yesterday morning when I saw the doctor, she gave no particular advice other than come back if I am not feeling better in a few days. I just wanted to be checked over as I had fallen quite hard backwards. Today, however, the pain has got worse between my shoulder blades, every breath in hurts, and bad headache even after taking co-codamol and ibuprofen together, so will go back to the doctors tomorrow and see what she says.

You got an appointment on a Saturday morning and you can just turn up tomorrow and be seen....rare indeed.

unholyangel

OP while I cant obviously speak for everyone, personally I wouldnt expect a £19 chair to last 6 months. Perhaps thats just me though and other posters can say what they think is reasonable in the circumstances to give you a rough idea of what might be considered a reasonable lifespan.

As for the reviews.....11 are 1 star, 1 is 3 star, 18 are 4 star and 88 are 5 star. 106 positive reviews vs 11 negative and 1 neutral.

JL (nor any retailer) wouldnt stop selling a product based on that ratio of bad reviews alone else they'd pretty much stop selling everything.

Although a few of the reviews suggest that wooden/laminate flooring may be a contributing factor and a few others said that sitting down carefully (versus flopping down onto them) stops the issue happening also.

Not saying thats whats happened in your case - just pointing out there may be other factors at play in determining the cause.

bris

What proof do you have that the chair was to blame?


If I feel down my stairs can I just say my bikes wheel fell off and sue Raleigh, there has to be some burden of proof.

leachi

Unholyangel, these chairs are going to cause a serious accident to somebody. These are not negative reviews about the superficial quality of something, such as the paint fading or an item of clothing going bobbly. People are complaining about chairs collapsing and JL are taking no action! I am gobsmacked that everyone here seems to think that my accident is acceptable due to the price- products still have to be fit for purpose. The chairs don't feel flimsy, they are wood and have a good weight to them, you would not expect the leg to snap off.

Actually, not one person has answered my original question, which was advice about using personal injury lawyers.

Bris, all I have is the chair which is proof of it's failure as the leg is separate from the rest of the structure. I also tweeted and Facebooked about it with photos after it happened. I also have been straight to the doctor with injuries consistent with falling backwards off a broken chair.

leachi

Oh and Gik yes my surgery does Saturday mornings, it's Beaconsfield Medical Centre in Brighton. I can also book appointments 24/7 online which is how I am being seen today, for an actual appointment, not just "turning up". Check it out online, maybe you should demand the same from your surgery, they are fantastic.

chickendipperbabe

If it was me I wouldn't bother perusing JL for compo, you've fallen off your chair (as we've all done) and you cant prove the chair failed due to a design flaw - you could have easily flopped onto it hard one to many times causing it to fail. Physio will be free, you can refer yourself if need be and if your primary concern is the chair being a danger to others and not the pursuit of recompense, you've done all you can by notifying JL of the issue and they'll act accordingly.

unholyangel

leachi wrote: »

Unholyangel, these chairs are going to cause a serious accident to somebody. These are not negative reviews about the superficial quality of something, such as the paint fading or an item of clothing going bobbly. People are complaining about chairs collapsing and JL are taking no action! I am gobsmacked that everyone here seems to think that my accident is acceptable due to the price- products still have to be fit for purpose. The chairs don't feel flimsy, they are wood and have a good weight to them, you would not expect the leg to snap off.

You still seem to be missing the point. Chairs are not designed to last indefinitely - especially not ones priced at £19.

The ratio of the reviews also suggests there is an element of misuse involved in their collapse. If the collapsing was solely down to it being such a crappy product, there would be significantly more negative reviews.

wealdroam

leachi wrote: »

Actually, not one person has answered my original question, which was advice about using personal injury lawyers.

I'll answer that.

Were you thinking of a no win no fee type of arrangement?

If so, now that you have told us:

leachi wrote: »

I am more interested in holding John Lewis to account and making sure this doesn't happen again than in "compo" for my " 'headaches' and such"...

...I fear you will struggle to find a lawyer interested.

Errata

The chair was less than 2 years old and had been tightened a few times

By someone competent in repairing furniture, or by someone tightening a few screws with a dinner knife and hoping for the best?